


Kisses and Red Roses

by LiquifiedStars



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Dorks in Love, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Identity Reveal, Kiss Reveal, LadyNoir - Freeform, Valentine's Day, adrienette - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 16:13:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29210166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiquifiedStars/pseuds/LiquifiedStars
Summary: When an akuma trap sends Chat Noir into a panic, Ladybug kisses him to calm him down and feelings become confused. What will happen though when Adrien thinks kissing a panicking Marinette would have the same effect?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 31
Kudos: 385





	Kisses and Red Roses

**Author's Note:**

> A little idea I came up with when I read an article about the health benefits of kissing. I hope you like this fun but if fluff.

“So, are you going to tell him this year? You know tomorrow is Valentine’s Day.” 

Marinette threw her head back and turned around in her desk chair, eyeing her best friend. Alya had made herself right at home across Marinette’s chaise, her feet propped on some pillows as she thumbed through a trashy teen girls magazine. They were supposed to be working on their assignment for Monday. 

“Alya, I already told you that I’m not coming up with any more scatterbrained ideas to confess to Adrien. I’m done with schemes that fail.” She then let out a heavy sigh. “I think two major failed attempts is enough.” Why did Valentine’s Day have to be on a school day and a Friday at that?

“Well you know what they say Marinette, third times a charm. Just remember to write your name on the card this time.” 

Marinette shook her head. “No, I’m not doing it. Besides, I’m good with just being his friend.” Alya scoffed loudly. “I mean it Alya. I hardly stutter around him now, well sometimes...but we worked really well together on that physics project last term and I even kissed him on the cheek without self combusting when he gave me that necklace for my sixteenth birthday.”

Alya gave her a deadpan expression. “Girl, no one gives their “just a friend” a pendant with a real ruby shaped like a rose for their birthday, and I know you wear it under your shirt permanently since he gave it to you.” 

Marinette’s face flushed as red as the stone that was indeed hanging around her neck. She instinctively placed her hand where it was hidden under her shirt. It was certainly a very expensive gift to give to a friend, but then again Adrien was always a generous person when it came to his friends. Last Christmas he bought Nino top of the line new headphones and when Alix’s roller blades broke the day before a major competition, Adrien hadn’t thought twice about handing over his card and buying her a new pair so she could still compete. Nope, Marinette was not going to read any more into it. Adrien was the sweetest person she knew (besides a certain feline hero) but she wasn’t sure her heart could take any more hope. 

“Marinette.” Alya said breaking into her best friends thoughts. “You are only fooling yourself if you keep saying Adrien is nothing more than a friend to you, and I’m pretty sure that necklace means you are a lot more to him too.”

“I don’t know Alya.” Marinette whined, dropping her head into her hands. “I mean, I thought he liked Kagami last year…”

“And we all thought you liked Luka. So what? I don’t recall Adrien buying Kagami jewelry for her birthday, or Luka buying it for you.” She reinforced her point poking Marinette in the chest. 

“But if Adrien thinks I’m more than a friend to him, then why doesn’t he say anything?” Alya looked at her slightly irritated. 

“Ah, maybe because you keep denying your feelings to his face? You haven’t exactly been sending him the clearest of signals?” Marinette looked away embarrassed.

“Don’t remind me.” Marinette pleaded, running her hands down her face.

“Well, luckily for you I might just have a solution. When words fail, kissing says everything you need.” She declared, waving her magazine around triumphantly. 

“What are you talking about?” Marinette queried. “And if that’s something in the sealed section then I really don’t want to know.” Alya feigned offence. 

“What do you take me for Marinette? Do you think I would pollute your innocent little mind like that?” Marinette gave her a sceptical look. 

“Well…” Marinette mused, taping her chin. 

“Look here.” Alya declared, showing Marinette the page she had been reading.

“The benefits of kissing for your health and well-being” Marinette read aloud and raised a suspicious eyebrow at Alya. 

“Just listen. It says here that kissing, whether tenderly or passionately, releases endorphins that reduce stress and calm the mind. This is the same kind of soothing action when a parent kisses a child that has hurt themselves. The calming effects can be instant and rejuvenating.” Marinette’s mind drifted off to another blond haired boy she had kissed before to break that Dark Cupid curse. 

“Huh.” Marinette said absentmindedly. She got up and began tidying up her sewing station, clipping the cover over her sewing machine. Maybe there was more power in kissing than Marinette thought. “I guess that might be true.” She had said it more to herself, but Alya’s appreciative hum snapped her out of it. “I mean...when I babysat Manon last week she fell over and scraped her knee, but she stopped crying when I kissed her forehead.”

“I See.” Alya said confidently before she continued reading. “Kissing in a high stress situation has been proven to lower cortisol, the stress hormone, and raise the mood. It can also be that first spark that reinforces your connection to each other.” 

“Yeah, I could kiss him and he feels absolutely nothing.” Marinette grimaced. 

“Or it could be everything to him.” Alya added more enthusiastically. 

“Alya, I don't have time for this.” Marinette sighed. “We have school assignments, I’ve got my commissions, I need to help my parents in the bakery…” she mentally added saving Paris a few times a week as well as being the guardian. “I just can't focus on Adrien right now.”

Alya dropped the magazine into her lap and waved her hand around. “Yes yes, and Adrien has his Chinese and Fencing and Modelling and everything else he does too. You are both stressed out. I’ve seen the two of you walking around like half dead zombies. My verdict is that you and sunshine boy are kiss deprived. Now on Valentine’s Day you should…”

“No Alya.” Marinette interjected. “I told you no more schemes. If Adrien and I are meant to be, then fate will find a way. If not, well…” She looked away forlorned. “Maybe it’s just not meant to be.”

Alya was about to argue the point when an akuma alert sounded on her phone. 

“Ha! I knew with Valentine’s Day tomorrow there would be an akuma.” Marinette watched as Alya grabbed her bag far too excited. Well there goes working on the assignment. “You coming to check it out girl?”

“No thanks.” Marinette replied. “I think I’ll just stay safe in the house. 

“Suit yourself. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.” Alya waved as she ducked her head out of the trap door. 

“I guess a quiet night was too much to ask for Tikki.” Marinette mused as her Kwami came out of hiding. 

“You know Hawk Moth always targets people around Valentine’s Day.” Tikki pointed out. “It can be a very stressful time for people.”

“Well according to Alya, all you need for stress is some kissing.” Marinette laughed, then her face dropped to panic. “You don’t suppose it’s a kissing akuma?”

“Only one way to find out.” Tikki replied in a sing-song voice. Marinette rolled her eyes and called her transformation before climbing out of her skylight and taking off across the rooftops of Paris. 

Ladybug was relieved to find this was not a kissing akuma, however it was a young man wracked with so much fear of being rejected by his crush he had found himself the target of Hawk Moth. Now he was forcing those he hit to have to face their greatest fears. To be perfectly honest, Ladybug would have preferred another Dark Cupid and have to kiss Chat Noir again rather than have to face her fears, but she had total sympathy for the akuma victim. Confessing to your crush was hard. She would know. 

Ladybug heard the sound of Chat Noir’s stick land beside her and said feline hero sliding down it with a civilian who had been stuck at the top of the Eiffel Tower. 

“Oh thank you Chat Noir.” The grateful woman said. “I’m terrified of heights and it was so, so high up there.”

“No problem.” He saluted her before turning his attention to an apprehensive Ladybug. “So, any deep and dark secrets you want to share with me tonight?” He teased. 

“Don’t even joke about it Chat, this reminds me too much of Sandboy for comfort. Let’s just get that akuma and be done with it.” She looked around at the sun setting in the distance. If it’s one thing she really hated, it was nighttime akumas. 

Chat nodded and raced beside her to where the akuma victim, who was calling himself Fearless, was placing Parisians into situations they were afraid of. 

“I think the akuma is in the red rose. See it tucked into his belt.” Chat said, pointing to the glowing object. Fearless was picking off petals which he threw at his victims. “Guess he got himself into a prickly situation?” 

Ladybug rolled her eyes and called on her lucky charm. A flurry later and a red and black polka dot night light fell into her hands. “What am I going to do with this?” She asked out loud as she looked around, but nothing was coming to her. 

“Look out.” Chat called. Ladybug barely had a moment to react when Chat crashed into the back of her, but instead of landing on the riverbank, they were both suddenly enveloped in a dark black cube.

“What the…!” Ladybug exclaimed just as her earring beeped its first warning. She could feel Chat still holding onto her, his face in her back. “Okay, no problem.” She said more to herself. “Chat just use your cataclysm and we can recharge our Kwamis and…” She stopped when she became aware of heavy ragged breathing behind her. Chat’s grip on her suddenly tightened. “Chat...are you okay?” She asked, slightly annoyed. Just because it was a small space didn’t mean he could take advantage of the situation!

She felt his head turn from side to side against her back and she frowned in confusion. “Chat, we need to get out. Just cataclysm the box.”

“Just cata...cata…” He panted, his breathing still laboured. Ladybug’s eyes widened. Something wasn’t right. Even Chat was far too much of a gentleman to take advantage of the small space they were in to try anything inappropriate. It then dawned on her that Chat must have been hit by Fearless while he was trying to protect her. She felt bad for jumping to conclusions. 

“Chat, do you have a fear of small spaces?” She asked, turning on the nightlight still in her hand. The small small filled with a soft warm glow. He shook his head against her again. 

“Tra...trapped.” He managed to say, burying his head into her back again as the second beep emitted from her earring. 

Ladybug patted his arm still tightly wound around her then turned around as best as she could on the cramped conditions to look at him. They were a tangle of arms and legs, but Chat had his eyes tightly closed. Ladybug took his hands in hers. 

“Kitty it’s okay. Just cataclysm the box and we will be out of here.”

“Cata...cata…” He was still panicked and unfocused. Ladybug didn’t know what to do. She needed him to calm down enough to summon his power, but all he could focus on was the walls around him. She bit her lip as she watched him tighten his eyes even more closed. Then she heard Alya’s voice from earlier in her mind - kissing had a calming effect. Oh! Okay, she thought to herself. Ladybug took a deep breath. 

“Chat, look at me please.” She said gently, touching his face with her hand. “Please Kitty.” Chat slowly opened his eyes, still breathing hard, and met her gaze. He had no idea the plethora of dialogue running through Ladybug’s mind convincing herself this was a good idea. “Chat, I’m going to do something to try and calm you down. Please don't freak out.“ This will be alright, she told herself. She had kissed him before, it will just be like Dark Cupid. 

This was nothing like Dark Cupid. There was one key factor that Ladybug hadn’t taken into account, Chat knew exactly what was going on this time. When she placed both hands on each side of his face, she caught a glimpse of his eyes widening as she closed the already short space between them and placed her lips on his. He startled momentarily before he slowly reciprocated her kiss. It only lasted a few moments, but it was enough for her to realise he was kissing her back, and she liked it. She was suppose to like it, it was just meant to be a means to and end, and oh my Lordy his lips were soft. 

When Ladybug pulled back her eyes met his. He was still breathless, but he also looked confused. Ladybug didn’t expect that, but it didn’t matter, Chat’s mind was no longer on their predicament but was completely clouded by the lingering feel of her kiss. Ladybug then smiled at him. “Do your thing Kitty.” She encouraged him. 

“Oh, right...cataclysm!” He summoned, and in no time the walls that had enclosed them disintegrated to dust as her earring beeped a third time. “Come on, we can recharge our Kwamis.” He said, pointing to a nearby roof. 

Once they were up there, they found a covered pottered garden where they could de-transform without being seen. Sitting back to back, they both called off their transformations and fed their respective Kwamis. 

“How...how did you know that would work?” Adrien asked. “Not that I’m complaining, but it was, you know, unexpected.” He heard Ladybug giggle behind him. 

“It was something my best friend read to me from some Valentine's Day article in a trashy girls mag.” She was glad he couldn’t see her face which felt very flushed. “It said that kissing can have a calming effect, you know endorphins and all that, like when a parent kisses a child it helps make them feel better.”

“Are you saying I’m like a child?” Adrien teased. 

“Sometimes.” Marinette replied. He could hear the playfulness in her voice as she leaned into his back. 

“Well, you have my permission to calm me down anytime.” Adrien laughed, reaching around to find her hand and giving it a light squeeze. “Seriously though, I’m sorry I freaked out like that.”

“You don’t have to apologise, Chat. I’m just glad I could help.” She squeezed his hand back. “Is Plagg ready?”

“Ready when you are Ladybug.” The cat Kwami called out. 

“I’m good too.” Tikki chimed in. 

It didn’t take long for them to defeat the akuma after that. Once they went their separate ways, Marinette found herself laying on her bed just watching the night sky through her skylight. Her feelings were all in a jumble. When she kissed Chat she didn’t expect that her pulse would speed up, or that her heart would beat faster when he kissed her back. She shook her head. No, it was just the adrenaline of the moment, that was all. She dismissed her residual feelings as nothing more than relief that her idea had worked, although she did feel very sorry for Chat. What could have happened to him that he was so afraid of being trapped? She had wanted to ask him, but thought maybe it would be too personal. Besides, he seemed really anxious to leave. Just her luck that the one time she really needed to talk to him, he was in a hurry. She hoped that wasn’t because of what had happened. 

With a sigh she rolled over and tried to sleep, and if she happened to have dreamt about her partner and more of those kisses, well she would keep that to herself. 

~~~~~  
The next morning Marinette was running late yet again. She had spent more time than she would like to admit thinking about kissing Chat. When she found her parents down in the bakery there was a flurry of customers buying Valentine's Day inspired cakes. Her father gave her a warm hug and handed her a box of heart shaped macaroons. 

“Here cupcake, why don’t you share these with your friends. I’m sure a certain blond haired boy would appreciate one.” Marinette knew her cheeks must have gone red by the grin in her father’s face. Why was her heart so complicated?

“Papa.” She whined. Marinette saw her mother chuckling behind the counter. Honestly, her parents were incorrigible sometimes. 

When Marinette arrived at school, there were happy couples everywhere sharing gifts and kisses. She smiled fondly at them. She was glad she didn’t let Alya pressure her into trying to confess to Adrien again, especially after last night. When she entered the classroom almost everyone was there...except Adrien she noted. Marinette slid in beside her best friend and offered her and Nino a macaroon. 

“You made it.” Alya quipped. “If you‘re hoping to find Adrien and tell him something important I’m afraid he isn’t here yet.” Alya elbowed Marinette in the ribs. 

“I told you I wasn’t doing that.” She pouted. “Maybe he isn’t coming today?”

“Think again.” Alya whispered and Marinette looked towards the door. She couldn’t help the sinking feeling in her stomach when she saw Adrien walking in with a single red rose in his hand, although she couldn’t begin to imagine who it would be for. Still, she had to do a double take at his dishevelled appearance which reminded her of another blond boy with wild hair and soft pink lips. She shook her head trying to banish those thoughts. 

“Oooh, what have you got there Sunshine?” Alya called out. “Is that for a special someone?” 

Adrien’s eyes widened when everyone in the room suddenly turned and looked at him. He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. “N...No, nothing like that. Ahh...some girl from another class just gave it to me. I guess she must be a fan or something.” Marinette watched Adrien and knew there was something deciding my off about his answer. Although Adrien had been ambushed many times by fans, he wasn’t usually so nervous about it. “But I think I can think of someone who might appreciate this more.”

His eyes drifted over to Marinette’s. She was sporting the most adorable pink blush on her cheeks and Adrien’s heart was more confused than ever. Until last night he had accepted that Ladybug was never going to return his affections, and was going to use Valentine’s Day as an opportunity to act upon the crush he knew he had on the bluenette that sat behind him in class. When Ladybug kissed him though, he felt it was something more than her just calming him down. There was a spark, a connection, and he was sure she had felt it too. But then there was Marinette with whom he couldn’t deny there was a strong gravitational pull towards. Now he was more confused than ever. 

“Dude, you okay there?” Nino asked and Adrien suddenly realised he had been staring at Marinette. 

“Oh, yeah, fine, just fine.” He then let a soft smile across his face as he handed the flower over to Marinette.

“Here, you should have this, it matches your cheeks.” Her eyes widened and Adrien fumbled. “I mean, the rose is red and your lips are red...I mean your face is red, like rosy red…ahh…” 

Marinette let out a giggle. He sounded like her on a bad day. Taking the rose she held up the box of treats. “Would you like a macaroon?” She offered, saving him from his growing embarrassment. Adrien smiled at her through his slightly disheveled bangs and she raised the rose to her nose. The scent was heavenly. 

“So Marinette, how are you going with that Chemistry assessment?” Alya asked as they got their books out ready for class. Adrien had already sat down and was talking to Nino while more of their classmates came in. 

“I’m stuck thanks to you bailing on me last night to chase that akuma.” Marinette admitted.

“Hey, a reporters got to do what a reporters got to do. I can’t let the Ladyblog down.”

“Well I did try working on the graph chart, but it doesn’t look right. I’m pretty sure I’ve got my calculations wrong.”

Marinette wasn’t sure she liked the glimmer in the brunette’s brown eyes. “Hey Adrien, are you busy this afternoon? No hot dates planned?” Alya suddenly called out. 

“What are you doing!” Marinette hissed under her breath. She practically hid her face behind her best friend’s shoulder. 

“Not really.” Adrien laughed. “Why? Need some help with something?” He asked with a smile. 

“Could you help my girl here with her Chemistry assignment? I would but Nino and I have a date, you know, being Valentine’s Day and all.” Alya ignored the groan emanating from her friend. 

“Bro, don’t you have fencing on Fridays?” Nino asked, unsure why his girlfriend was giving him a death stare. 

“Actually, fencing was cancelled.” Adrien said. “I guess even Mr D’Argencourt has a date.” He looked a little wistful before he looked over at Marinette. “I’d be happy to help, if you want me to that is?”

“Um...yeah…sure.” Marinette fumbled. Adrien smiled at her and turned around as the teacher walked into the room. 

“You can thank me later.” Alya whispered with a wink. Marinette tried to ignore her, but couldn’t help running her fingers over the rose that was now laying on her desk, her other hand rubbing the necklace under her shirt. 

When the final bell of the day rang, Marinette found Adrien already waiting for her at her locker. She took out her books, and the rose he had given her and followed him outside. She knew people were looking at them and the rose in her hand. They of course had no way of knowing that this was just a flower from a fan he had given her. It was just something nice between friends, that’s all. It wasn’t like he had bought it especially. 

“You’re father won’t mind you coming will he? I wouldn’t want you to get into trouble.” She said as they walked. 

“It’s no trouble.” Adrien assured her. “I let Nathalie know. He’s been stuck in meetings all day. The new collection is launching soon so he’s been pretty busy.”

Marinette nodded her head, but didn’t say much else. Adrien watched her as they got closer to the bakery and she started chewing on her lip. Maybe she was more worried about the assignment than he first thought. 

Upon entering the bakery, Sabine greeted them, her eyes lighting up at the rose in Marinette’s hand. “Oh that’s beautiful honey.” She declared, grabbing a vase down from off a shelf. “That was very thoughtful of you dear.” She said towards Adrien. 

“Oh, no mama, it’s not what you think…” Marinette began to explain, but her mother had already taken the flower and headed over to the sink to get water. 

“There’s no need to explain sweetheart.” Sabine said cheerfully. “I understand perfectly. Help yourself to some treats Adrien.” She then sat the vase on the counter and hurried back to the kitchen. 

“I’m sorry about that.” Marinette said sheepishly, looking up at Adrien through her fringe. 

“I’m not.” He replied cheerfully between mouthfuls of croissant. Marinette couldn’t help but giggle at him and it brought a smile to his face to hear it. 

Once they were up in her room Adrien made himself comfortable on the chaise and got out his text book while Marinette sat in her computer chair to bring up her assignment file. 

“Ugh, why is this computer running so slow?” She complained, tapping her mouse furiously. 

“There’s no rush Marinette, I’m not going anywhere.” Adrien reassured her. She turned in her chair to see his winning smile and her heart was doing summersaults. She smiled shyly, turning back around to her computer to hide her rising blush. He had seen it though, and it was doing funny things to his own chest. 

Kissing Ladybug last night had been a dream come true for Adrien. Even though he logically knew she had only done it to take his mind off being trapped, it was still perfect and yet...and yet there was an emptiness there, like in the back of his mind he had wished it was someone else. 

“Oh no.” Adrien suddenly heard. He looked up to see Marinette pulling on her pigtails. “No no no. You can’t be serious! Don’t do this to me!”

“Marinette?” He asked. The bluenette suddenly stood up and started pacing. 

“It’s gone.” She cried. “The graph...the assignment...it’s gone. This can not be happening.”

Adrien got up but wasn’t sure what to do as Marinette kept pacing. “I spent hours on that thing. I can’t start again, there isn’t enough time.” She wrapped her arms around herself as she kept walking. “It’s due on Monday and I still have a commission to finish and a special order to help in the bakery and then I have babysitting tomorrow night and I’m going to fail and this is all going to be a disaster and…oomph.” Marientte’s brain suddenly short circuited as a pair of warm soft lips were suddenly on hers and felt agonisingly familiar. 

If you were to ask Adrien why he chose that moment to scoop Marinette’s face into his hands and plant a kiss on her, he probably wouldn’t be able to tell you. As he watched Marinette spiral into panic there was somewhere in his brain that remembered what Ladybug had said to him. The fact that her kissing him had worked was enough that he thought it was a good idea to try it for Marinette. It was no big deal. 

Scratch that. It was a very big deal because while Marinette was initially stunned at the contact, it only took her a moment to recover enough to start moving her lips against his. To Adrien’s surprise and delight he was thoroughly enjoying it. Unlike the kiss with Ladybug that ended all too quickly, he instinctively went to deepen the kiss and Marinette tilted her head to reciprocate. He had to admit, it made him weak at the knees. When he finally pulled back for air, he was still cradling her face in his hands. 

“Sorry.” He said breathlessly, looking at her intently. “I should have asked first but you were panicking and a friend of mine told me kissing could calm people down.” Marinette blinked at him. 

“Calm them down.” She repeated slowly and Adrien nodded. 

“Yeah, something about endorphins and making kids.” 

“Making kids…?” Then all of a sudden it clicked and she began to laugh, collapsing onto the chaise. 

“Was it something I said?” Adrien asked confused, although he loved hearing her laugh. 

“Making kids feel better.” She finally managed to say in between laughter “I said kissing kids made them feel better Kitty.”

“Oh that makes more sense.” He said before the penny dropped. “Wait a minute.” He quickly sat beside her and looked her in the face. “Ladybug?”

Marinette smiled and nodded. “I guess I should thank Alya for reading me that stupid article.” Adrien’s smile grew wider. 

“I should have bought you a bigger bunch of flowers.” Marinette looked at him confused. 

“But I thought you said a fan gave them to you?” Adrien shook his head. 

“No, I ran to the florist after my bodyguard dropped me off. That’s why I was running late. Then I panicked because everyone was looking and I was confused about kissing you, well Ladybug, last night. I’m sorry.” He darted his eyes away. Marinette reached her hand out, cupping his cheek and turning his eyes back towards hers. 

“I’m not.” She said softly and Adrien felt like his heart might burst when her lips found his again. 

By Monday Marinette not only had one completed assignment but also a bunch of red roses from her doting boyfriend.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this Valentine’s story. For those who are fans of “Cinnamon and Vanilla” I’ve decided to not do the series of one-shot stories, but a sequel instead. I’ve been blow away by the requests for a sequel and I’m excited for it later in the year.
> 
> Next up first though will be “Unbroken” which will be coming soon and will be multi chapter. See you again then :)


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